Portraits of Mary Montgomery and William Tate Campbell of Washington County, Virginia
Oil on Canvas ~~ Original Painted and Gilt Corner Block Frames
Attributed to John C. Grimes (1804-1837)
Nashville, Tennessee ~ Circa 1825-1830
30” X 25” Canvas ~ 32 ¼” X 37” Overall
Commentary:
Biographical information on American born in interior during the early nineteenth century are often limited and research thus far has revealed only the barest outlines of the lives of William (1802 – 1862) and Mary Campbell (1801-1846). They were married in Wythe County, Virginia February 26, 1824 and it is likely that these fashionable portraits were taken in Nashville by the artist John C. Grimes who had an established studio. By the early decades of the 19th century Nashville had established itself as a regional economic, political and cultural center. and would have been a relatively convenient destination for the Campbells from their home in the far western reaches of Virginia. Mary and William Campbell lived in the Rich Valley area of Smyth County Virginia (near Abingdon, Virginia. Washington County divided in 1832) and are buried together in the cemetery of the Rich Valley Presbyterian Church. William may have been the son of John Campbell and Dorcas Tate and was probably related to General William Campbell of King’s Mountain fame.
John C. Grimes was born in Kentucky and studied with Matthew Harris Jouett who painted a portrait of Grimes now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Grimes was painting in Huntsville, Alabama as early as 1821 and is thought to have made a number of trips back to the region during his career. He also traveled to Philadelphia in 1825 and may have studied at least briefly with Thomas Sully. By the end of the decade Grimes had established a studio in Nashville where he continued to painted up until his death. He died in Lexington in 1837 leaving some fifty five completed or partially completed works in his Nashville studio.
Grimes’ subjects “tend to have large heads with elongated faces and bodies, and their costumes are rendered in fine detail. They are usually posed in a red upholstered chair with drapery behind…despite the stiff poses, the richly colored complex settings and clothing and the faint smiles five the portraits a remarkable vitality….The whimsical Grimes attempted to portray them with a grandiose brush, for he wanted them to appear cosmopolitan.” Grimes’ circa 1825 portraits of William Fleming and his wife, Sarah Lewis (private collection) exhibit all of the noted characteristics and are nearly identical in composition, pose and coloration to the portraits of the Campbells. (See John Grimes, Alabama’s First Portrait Painter, by Edward Pattillo, in Alabama Heritage, Winter 2002.)
The portraits descended through the Campbell Family and are identified on the original stretchers and frames as well as in family documents. They were enumerated in the 1916 will of Charles Custis Rogers of Nashville, Tennessee, as “one portrait of my grandfather Campbell; one portrait of my grandmother Campbell,” and were bequeathed to his son, Armistead Calhoun Rogers. The portraits are believed to have descended through the family thusly;
William T. Campbell (1802-1862) and Mary Montgomery (1801-1846), to their daughter,
Mary W. Campbell (b. 1834) and her husband, Charles George Rogers (b. 1831), to their son,
Rear Admiral Charles Custis Rogers, U. S. N., and his wife, Alice Ashmore Walker (1864-1902), by bequest to their son,
Armistead Calhoun Rogers, to his sister,
Winifred Montgomery Rogers (b. 1889) and her husband, Stephen Decatur, Jr. (1886-1964) of Kittery Point, Maine, to their daughter,
Alice Decatur (1922-2006) and her husband, Douglas J. Armsden (1918-2009), to their daughter, Beverly Armsden Daniel.
Condition: These two portraits survive in excellent condition. They were cleaned and lined in 2010. During conservation several small tears (without loss) in the portrait of Mary Campbell were repaired. The paintings remain on their original stretchers that have been braced. The frames retain their early black painted surfaces and gilded corner blocks with some overpainting in evidence.
Price: Sold
Additional Photos
Individual Portraits
Grimes in Alabama Heritage
